Wednesday, August 6, 2008

Basic Information On Final Project

Objective: 
- Students will be able to create an effective travel brochure based on their own research.
- Students will be able to conduct meaningful, purposeful internet research.
- Students will be able to work collaboratively with their partner or group in order to complete task.

Students: 16 Advanced 5th graders in a pull-out class (from 4 different mainstream classrooms)

Materials: SMART board or LCD projector and laptop, computers (2 students per), printer, paper, pencils, graphic organizers, scissors, glue.

Standards:

ESL:
-Students will listen, speak, read, and write in English for information and understanding.
-Students will listen, speak, read, and write in English for critical analysis and evaluation.
-Students will listen, speak, read, and write in English for classroom and social interaction.
-Students will demonstrate cross-cultural knowledge and understanding.

ELA:
-Listening and reading to acquire information and understanding involves collecting data, facts, and ideas; discovering relationships, concepts, and generalizations; and using knowledge from oral, written, and electronic sources.
-Speaking and writing to acquire and transmit information requires asking probing and clarifying questions, interpreting information in one’s own words, applying information from one context to another, and presenting the information and interpretation clearly, concisely, and comprehensibly.

Technology:
-Students use digital media and environments to communicate and work collaboratively, including at a distance, to support individual learning and contribute to the learning of others.
-Students apply digital tools to gather, evaluate, and use information.


As an ESL pull-out teacher this past year, I was given no curriculum. I decided to work on what I knew the students needed most, chiefly writing (formal and informal). In the age of e-mail I felt that writing old-fashioned letters to pen pals across the Atlantic would be a fun and interesting experience. This unit is intended for a class of advanced 5th graders who represent almost ten countries. Despite their diversity and worldly experiences, they often had a hard time comprehending life in another country. As I plan on doing this type of project in the future, I have built this part of the unit taking into account their experiences as well as my own from the first time I attempted something like this. This particular part of the larger project is aimed at working on Social Studies research and ELA, writing, and note-taking skills, as well as cultural enrichment. As this is a class of 5th graders, these are all skills they will need to continue to work on throughout Middle School.
I intend to have this particular part of the project take about 2 weeks. Students will have the responsibility of taking notes as well as marking where they stopped so as to begin quickly the following day. The goal was to take the students step-by-step through the process, and to have them make determinations and be given creative control. By working in collaboration with a partner, they will need to negotiate and compromise in order to produce an effective brochure.

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